real estate investor

To own commercial property, you don’t need to be rich, and there are more opportunities with the downturns in the Vancouver and Toronto markets.

Chris Catliff, The President and CEO of Blueshore Financial, says for middle-class investors, there are other methods to enter the property business.

He lately shared five tips with those considering building up their commercial real estate retirement portfolio.:

Start small with a REIT

To own commercial property, you don’t need to be rich, Catliff said. “In fact, my son is already invested in a Tax-Free Savings Account with a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT).”

A REIT is a company that owns, operates and pays dividends on a variety of real estate assets on behalf of a pool of investors who purchased shares or stocks.

“They have relatively high yields compared to the broader market, or bonds or Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs),” he said. They’re typically riskier than government bonds or GICs but much less risky than tech stocks.

The purchase of shares in a REIT basically includes a collection of assets across the nation.Some REITs focus on the office sector, others on apartment or industrial or retail properties

“That diversifies your risk,” he said, adding that most REITs can be purchased through a stock broker, financial advisor or online through your direct investing platform.

Invest in a strata unit

For bolder middle-class investors — and ones who don’t mind a bit more work — you could buy your own strata unit in a commercial development, Catliff said.

Like with condo residential buildings, many developers build strata commercial buildings in various asset classes including office, retail and industrial..

Buy in a place you can visit

Catliff said he likes to own units in buildings he’s familiar with and can visit. “I purchased business units on my drive to work so I could see them twice a day..”

That’s so you can see what kind of development is taking place around your building and stay familiar with the market and the other tenants, he said.

Think urban

More than three-fifths of immigrants to Canada are settling in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal, Catliff said. That means demand for homes, jobs and work space will continue to grow along with the population in those areas.

More demand for your space means less cash flow risk.

Catliff said it’s important to understand the supply and demand elements of your local market. In places like Vancouver and Toronto, demand for small industrial warehouse space or small light-manufacturing units has never been stronger.

Demand is also high for small street-front retail spaces in urban cores. There will always be people trying to buy themselves a job with a business like a sandwich shop or small restaurant, Catliff said. “There is just a lineup of people waiting for that kind of space.”

Do your homework

“You really have to consider location,” he said. “You’re looking for high traffic. How easy is it to rent out to somebody else? Anything downtown pretty much has a lineup of people. If it’s in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Kelowna, you can always rent something out, it’s just a matter of what return you get.”

In the suburbs, anything you purchase should be considered for its future redevelopment potential, he added. “In the burbs… you’re (often) holding land until development comes to you.”

The federal agency states in a report that Vancouver’s “evidence of price acceleration” has eased to low, prompting a downsizing as “extremely vulnerable” after 12 successive quarters.

“While home price growth has considerably outstripped rates backed by fundamentals over the previous few years, these imbalances have reduced in various sections of the resale industry through fundamental development and reduced home prices.,” CMHC said in its latest Housing Market Assessment report.

The agency said a moderate degree of vulnerability continues at the domestic level, but imbalances have declined over the previous year between house prices and the basics of the housing market. Some markets like Toronto and Victoria, however, are at greater risk.

Nationally, The inflation-adjusted average cost reduced by 5.6% year-over-year in the first quarter of 2019 from the same period a year previously, CMHC said.

In the previous quarter’s report, CMHC lowered its rating for Canada’s overall housing market from to moderate from high vulnerability – where it had stood for 10 consecutive quarters – as mortgage stress tests introduced last year made it harder for homebuyers to qualify and eased price acceleration.

The recent market forecast by the Canadian Real Estate Association published in June projects that the domestic average cost will drop to about $485,000 by the end of this year, compared to the 4.1% decrease reported in 2018.

Recent statistics from Greater Vancouver’s Real Estate Board showed that a home in Metro Vancouver’s benchmark cost dropped to $998,700 in June, the first time since May 2017 it fell below the $1 million mark.

The Bank of Canada in May also said that housing prices in the key markets of Vancouver and Toronto have cooled, but imbalances in real estate markets are still an important vulnerability for the overall financial system.

The vulnerability assessment of CMHC is based on several criteria including cost acceleration, overvaluation, overbuilding, and overheating. It examines the degree of vulnerability and aims to define housing market imbalances.

Toronto, Hamilton and Victoria continue to be highly vulnerable, but in all three markets, overheating, price speed and overvaluation show signs of decline.

Timing can be all. And, according to some estimates, selecting the correct time to purchase or sell a house might save you tens of thousands of bucks.

Best time to sell

While there is a tendency for customers to choose from more inventory in the spring, there is generally more competition as well, which is good for vendors.

After evaluating states some Experts concluded actual property information, the Experts up with that report. It showed that May had the largest sales amount compared to any other month of the year and that prices tended to be greater.

Possible reasons for that is that aside from nicer weather, a home tends to show better in spring and summer. More buyers may also be ready to buy as they might be using their tax refunds for the down payment. Plus, if they have kids, moving in summer means schooling isn’t interrupted.

Report added that selling in May can get you $60,000 more than if you were to sell in January, on average over the past five.

Best time to buy

“If someone lists a house in the winter, it’s a pretty secure bet they’re keen vendors and more open to negotiation. If not, they’d wait for the spring, a Reporter said”.

Also, sellers may be more driven to accept an offer in January as the holiday credit card bills start rolling in, Reporter said. Purchasers can also enjoy the holidays themselves.

“The house of somebody can be an emotional attachment, so the vendor thinks, ‘ If they are prepared to create an offer on Christmas Day of all days, they must really enjoy this house.’

“And another factor that comes into play is … individuals are in nice and generous moods on Christmas Day so they might very well be prepared to accept less cash than they usually would any other day..”

During the holidays, people who are just sick and tired of shows can be another motivator, like B.C. Realtor’s point was made. She said she had some “very nice offers” about Christmas for customers.

June house sales across Greater Vancouver were the lowest since 2000 because for the first time in two years, the benchmark cost for all households in the region fell below $1 million.

The Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board (REBGV) claims 2,077 homes sold in June, down 14.4 percent year-on-year and down 21.3 percent from this year’s May.

According to the board, sales were also 34.7 percent below the June 10-year average and the 19-year lowest for the month.

The pace of new market listings has slackened, with a 10% fall in new homes added to the market since June 2018, the REBGV said.

However, inventory continued to stack up, with just under 15,000 homes listed for sale — up 25.3 per cent from the same month last year and up a modest 1.9 per cent from May 2019, it said.

As sales continue to soften so, too, do prices.

The benchmark price for all home types was $998,700 in June, the lowest it has been since May 2017, the REBGV said.

For detached homes across the region, the benchmark price was $1,423,500, down 10.9 per cent year over year and 9.2 per cent over three years but up 0.1 per cent from May.

For apartments, the benchmark price was $654,700 in June, down 8.9 per cent year over year and 1.4 per cent from May.

Drilling deeper into numbers shows some wilder swings in pricing.

The benchmark price for a detached home in West Vancouver was down 12.9 per cent from last June. It was also down 13.1 per cent in Richmond, 14 per cent on Vancouver’s west side and 12.6 per cent in South Burnaby.

Condo prices, which have better resisted the cool-down, also saw significant movement in some sub-regions.

The benchmark price of a condo was below $500,000 in Ladner, Maple Ridge, Pitt Meadows, Port Coquitlam and Tsawwassen and under $600,000 in East Vancouver, Coquitlam, New Westminster and North Vancouver.

The REBGV said the sluggish market means buyers are seeing the most choice in five years but that sellers continue to hold on, hoping for “yesterday’s value for their homes.”

The data relating to real estate on this web site comes in part from the MLS® Reciprocity program of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver or the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board. Real estate listings held by participating real estate firms are marked with the MLS® Reciprocity logo and detailed information about the listing includes the name of the listing agent. This representation is based in whole or part on data generated by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver or the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board which assumes no responsibility for its accuracy. The materials contained on this page may not be reproduced without the express written consent of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver or the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board. Listing data last updated 2019-09-15T06:17:03Z.